


Tooth and Nail

by LeTempest



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Prompt Fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-30
Updated: 2013-06-30
Packaged: 2017-12-16 15:09:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/863417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeTempest/pseuds/LeTempest
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Isaac trusts him, and that’s no small weight. It’s something he’ll fight to keep, tooth and nail if he has to.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tooth and Nail

**Author's Note:**

> yet another prompt fill from my tumblr
> 
> Disclaimer: I sadly do not own teen wolf. If I did, I can promise you every character would have and endless supply of puppies and rainbows and no one would ever be sad ever. But alas I don't and this is just for funnies.

            He smells the blood the second he hit’s Derek’s door. It’s mixed with the hot, acrid scent of fear and panic, so strong Scott can taste it in the back of his throat. That’s Lydia, he knows it when he sees her, pressed to Allison’s side, fingers clutching the other girl’s jacket unconsciously, lip caught between her teeth in a way that make him forget she has a wit like a razor blade. There is a thrumming under current of regret, and worry. That’s Allison and Derek too. Allison and Isaac have only recently gotten to the point of friends, but Allison is protective of anyone with that title, new or old. And Derek, Derek is still serving penance for his poor choices where Isaac is concerned.  On Stiles, still standing at Scott’s side, he can smell frustration, helplessness. Stiles in the info man, but he’s out of his element here and he knows it. Cora reeks of apprehension, sitting on the stairs, curled over her knees, watching. Isaac is her pack mate only by blood, a strange type of bond they are still trying to feel out. It’s only Boyd’s scent that escapes him, and Scott realizes it’s because Boyd is detached and perfectly calm. The way he always seems to be these day.

But the blood, the blood is Isaac. It’s painted across his torso, his neck, his arms, his face. Scott can’t tell what’s healing and what’s not, the taller teen is so covered in gore. He’s naked to the waist, long body tucked tightly into the far corner of Derek’s loft. Scott’s first reaction is fury, because why aren’t the other’s helping him? It only takes him a moment to realize they can’t.

Derek is crouched an arms length away, Boyd flanking him, reaching for the beta. But Isaac, half transformed, with teeth and claws and liquid gold eyes, bares his fangs and growls, low and dangerous. Derek calls to him, uses his alpha voice; Isaac can see the shockwave roll through Boyd and Cora. But Isaac’s only response is to wedge himself further back into the corner.

“This is why I called you,” Allison whispers in his ear, suddenly very close to him. Her arms are crossed over her chest, hugging herself, the way she always does when she’s worried.

“He found Lydia out in the preserve, but the Alpha’s got to them before we could. He protected her but…” Allison’s eyes slid to their friend and then back to Scott, “ he was out of it for most of the time it took us to get him back. Then he just, lost it. Snapping and growling. He took a chunk out Derek’s arm. No one can get through to him….”

The gaze she gives him finishes the sentence for her.

_I thought maybe you could._

Scott nods, turning to Stiles.

“You should get Lydia out of here,” he says quietly.

Stiles gives a tense nod, but moves to Lydia’s side, quick to drapes his jacket over her bare shoulders. She’s shaking and takes it without a word. She’s had enough madness in her life in the last year that she more than deserves to be distressed. Stiles steers her towards the door and Allison follows, looking over her shoulder one last time before she shuts the door. They’ll be safe with her.

Scott turns back to the matter at hand, shrugging off his jacket and taking a few careful steps towards the other beta. Isaac sees him move, lips curling back over his teeth again. Scott stills, his hands up in a gentling gesture. Wolf Isaac doesn’t seem convinced. Up close Scott can see the wounds. A long ragged set of claw marks, start just below his jaw, down his neck and shoulder, across his chest. The flesh of his forearms is shredded, from where he tried to protect himself or Lydia. Another set of marks wraps around his ribs. The flesh knits slowly or not at all, and the blood drips, garishly bright and hauntingly loud on the wood floor.

Derek shook his head, frustration clear on his face. Isaac didn’t trust him anymore, alpha or not, so neither did Isaac’s wolf it seemed.

“Let me try,” Scott said, trying to keep his voice even, and though he smells the hesitation, strong on Derek’s skin, the alpha does move, a hand on Boyd’s bicep to pull him back too.

Scott scooted forward, dropping into a crouch to take up the place the other wolves had just vacated.

“Isaac,” he tries, his voice calm and quiet, the voice he uses with frightened animals at the clinic.

Isaac snarls at him and Scott wishes very suddenly that he knew what it was he’d done that day in the janitor’s closet.

“It’s okay, it’s just Scott,” he says

The deep rumbling quiets but the teeth stay bared. Well, progress was progress he supposed.

He inches closer, slowly, carefully, his gaze locked with the other teen’s. He knows why Allison called him. Isaac trusts Scott, if only Scott can reach him.

“Your safe now Isaac,” he coaxes, “Lydia’s safe. The only alpha here is Derek and he wants to help you. He’s worried about you, we all are. Can’t you smell it, feel it?”

Isaac makes a sound somewhere between a whine and growl, clawed fingers curling on the floor. Scott took another careful inch forward.

“Lydia’s alive because of you. She’s safe, because of you. You saved her Isaac; you did more than anyone could have asked you to. You always do. Let us take care of you now.”

For a moment, Isaac’s eyes flickered blue, and Scott took a chance. Carefully, slowly, he reached out to Isaac, his fingers just brushing the back of Isaac’s hand.

“I need you to trust me, Isaac,” Scott ventures, knowing how horribly wrong this could go, “that I’m trying to help you. Do you trust me?”

 The silence hangs between them for a few long moments, but it’s Isaac who moves first this time. He reaches for Scott with his free hand, catching the shorter boy’s wrist; his grip tacky with drying blood. But Scott doesn’t even get the chance to care because once they’ve made contact, the wolf starts pulling back and everything that was holding Isaac together crumples, shifting sideways, and he’s sliding to the floor. He shifts, even though Scott can see the movement pains him, pulling himself towards the other wolf, and Scott moves with him, until Isaac is laying in a heap across Scott’s folded knees. Isaac’s gets a fist full of Scott’s shirt and holds on tight, trying to muffle the whine that slithers out of him. Scott, leans over the other wolf, overcome with a sudden fierce need to shield him, protect him. His fingers comb though Isaac’s curls.

“You’re safe, “ he says, over and over, like a mantra, “We’ve got you. You’re safe.”

 Isaac clings to him, and Scott doesn’t want to let go but the wounds still aren’t healing and he can feel the beta’s blood soaking through his jeans. It’s Boyd who carries his pack mate, with a form big enough to easily handle even Isaac’s lanky body. They settle him into his old room upstairs, which Scott is surprise and yet not surprised to find that Derek has touched. Everything was just as Isaac left it. Scott wants to say something about, though he’s not sure what, but there is no time, because Derek is shoving past them, hands full of the same flower as the last time the alpha’s hurt Isaac. Boyd takes up watch by the door, leaning in the frame with his arms crossed, as if he could keep all the bad out just standing there. Cora slides to the floor by his feet, watchful, but still not quiet sure what to do with herself.  Scott stays close though, kneeling next to the big bed, touching Isaac’s hair, talking to him while Derek works. The other boy is only half there, but he nods when Scott asks him questions and he smiles weakly when Scott smiles at him first. And somehow this feels right, like this is where Scott belongs and everyone in the room knows it.

            Minutes crawl by and Derek’s work starts to pay off, the flesh pulling together more quickly now, though the alpha says it will take a few days to heal to the core. Cora leaves and then comes back with a towel, one half of it damp and she hands it to Scott. He smiles and thanks her, before Derek catches he shoulder lightly and nods towards the door. Boyd moves to let them pass.

            “Take good care of him. He really does trust you,” the beta said, before he turns to leave as well.

            Scott thinks about it, while he wipes away the blood. Isaac’s eyes are finally all the way closed( though they’ve been at half mast for the better part of an hour), and his breathing is even and slow. Scott is careful, more careful than he knows he needs to be. But he hates that it always seems to be Isaac who gets the worst of these things. Isaac who does what he does because underneath his cocky grins and sharp arrogance there is a good heart and weary soul. There is a boy who knows he’s made mistakes, who tries his best to atone, but will never really feel like he is good enough. Scott can understands that, understands Isaac. And he’s surprised to find that there isn’t much in the world he wouldn’t do to keep all that dark pain out of Isaac’s gaze.

            He doesn’t realize Isaac is looking at him until he brushes Scott’s hand with his own.

            Scott startles and then blushes and Isaac is smiling, small but honest and Scott feels a bit better about the world. When did that happen, he half wonders, Isaac’s smile making things seem okay.

             “Thank you,” he says, and all Scott can do is nod, his finger closing around the other wolf’s. Because Isaac trusts him, and that’s no small weight. It’s something he’ll fight to keep, tooth and nail if he has too.


End file.
